Wisconsin's 8th congressional district

Wisconsin's 8th congressional district
Wisconsin's 8th congressional district - since January 3, 2013.
Representative	Mike Gallagher R–Green Bay
Area	9,740.44 sq mi (25,227.6 km2)
Distribution	56.04% urban 43.96% rural
Population (2019)	735,079
Median household income	$65,346[1]
Ethnicity	86% White[2] 5% Hispanic 2% Native American 2% Asian 2% Black 2% other
Cook PVI	R+10[3]

Wisconsin's 8th congressional district is a congressional district of the United States House of Representatives in northeastern Wisconsin. It is currently represented by Mike Gallagher, a Republican. Gallagher won the open seat vacated by Reid Ribble in 2016. It is also one of two Congressional Districts to ever elect a Catholic priest, Robert John Cornell.

The 8th District has leaned Republican throughout its history; seven Democrats have represented it since its creation, but none have served more than two terms. It became more of a swing seat in the 1990s. In 2004, Republican George W. Bush won 55 percent of the vote in the district, while in 2008, Democrat Barack Obama received 53.6 percent of the vote. The last Democrat to represent the district was Steve Kagen from 2007 to 2011. Since Kagen lost in the 2010 election, the seat has been held by Republicans, who have consistently won it by double digit percent margins in each election to the seat since 2012, and won similarly in statewide elections. The only county in the current district to back the Democratic presidential candidate in the 2000, 2004 and 2016 elections was overwhelmingly Native American Menominee County, which has never voted Republican since its creation in 1960, and only Menominee and Door Counties voted Democratic in 2012.

Since the 1930 Census, the district has been centered upon Green Bay, Appleton and the Door Peninsula. Between the 1970 Census and the 2010 Census, the 8th moved north to encompass most counties bordering Michigan, but after 2010 it lost most of the border counties to the Seventh District, whilst gaining Calumet County.

Counties currently within the district include the entirety of Brown, Calumet, Door, Kewaunee, Marinette, Menominee, Oconto, Outagamie, Shawano, and Waupaca Counties, and part of Winnebago County.

Presidential Voting Results[]

Year	Office	Results
2000	President	Bush 52% – 43%
2004	President	Bush 55% – 44%
2008	President	Obama 53% – 45%
2012	President	Romney 51% – 48%
2016	President	Trump 56% – 39%
2020	President	Trump 57% – 41%

List of members representing the district[]

Member	Party	Years	Cong ress	Electoral history
District created March 4, 1873
Alexander S. McDill	Republican	March 4, 1873 – March 3, 1875	43rd	Elected in 1872. Lost re-election.
George W. Cate	Democratic	March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877	44th	Elected in 1874. Lost re-election.
Thaddeus C. Pound	Republican	March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1883	45th 46th 47th	Elected in 1876. Re-elected in 1878. Re-elected in 1880. Retired.
William T. Price	Republican	March 4, 1883 – December 6, 1886	48th 49th	Elected in 1882. Re-elected in 1884. Died.
Vacant		December 6, 1886 – January 18, 1887	49th
Hugh H. Price	Republican	January 18, 1887 – March 3, 1887		Elected to finish his father's term. Retired.
Nils P. Haugen	Republican	March 4, 1887 – March 3, 1893	50th 51st 52nd	Elected in 1886. Re-elected in 1888. Re-elected in 1890. Redistricted to the 10th district.
Lyman E. Barnes	Democratic	March 4, 1893 – March 3, 1895	53rd	Elected in 1892. Lost re-election.
Edward S. Minor	Republican	March 4, 1895 – March 3, 1903	54th 55th 56th 57th	Elected in 1894. Re-elected in 1896. Re-elected in 1898. Re-elected in 1900. Redistricted to the 9th district.
James H. Davidson	Republican	March 4, 1903 – March 3, 1913	58th 59th 60th 61st 62nd	Redistricted from the 6th district and re-elected in 1902. Re-elected in 1904. Re-elected in 1906. Re-elected in 1908. Re-elected in 1910. Lost re-election.
Edward E. Browne	Republican	March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1931	63rd 64th 65th 66th 67th 68th 69th 70th 71st	Elected in 1912. Re-elected in 1914. Re-elected in 1916. Re-elected in 1918. Re-elected in 1920. Re-elected in 1922. Re-elected in 1924. Re-elected in 1926. Re-elected in 1928. Lost renomination.
Gerald J. Boileau	Republican	March 4, 1931 – March 3, 1933	72nd	Elected in 1930. Redistricted to the 7th district.
James F. Hughes	Democratic	March 4, 1933 – January 3, 1935	73rd	Elected in 1932. Retired.
George J. Schneider	Progressive	January 3, 1935 – January 3, 1939	74th 75th	Elected in 1934. Re-elected in 1936. Lost re-election.
Joshua L. Johns	Republican	January 3, 1939 – January 3, 1943	76th 77th	Elected in 1938. Re-elected in 1940. Lost re-election.
LaVern Dilweg	Democratic	January 3, 1943 – January 3, 1945	78th	Elected in 1942. Lost re-election.
John W. Byrnes	Republican	January 3, 1945 – January 3, 1973	79th 80th 81st 82nd 83rd 84th 85th 86th 87th 88th 89th 90th 91st 92nd	Elected in 1944. Re-elected in 1946. Re-elected in 1948. Re-elected in 1950. Re-elected in 1952. Re-elected in 1954. Re-elected in 1956. Re-elected in 1958. Re-elected in 1960. Re-elected in 1962. Re-elected in 1964. Re-elected in 1966. Re-elected in 1968. Re-elected in 1970. Retired.
Harold Vernon Froehlich	Republican	January 3, 1973 – January 3, 1975	93rd	Elected in 1972. Lost re-election.
Robert John Cornell	Democratic	January 3, 1975 – January 3, 1979	94th 95th	Elected in 1974. Re-elected in 1976. Lost re-election.
Toby Roth	Republican	January 3, 1979 – January 3, 1997	96th 97th 98th 99th 100th 101st 102nd 103rd 104th	Elected in 1978. Re-elected in 1980. Re-elected in 1982. Re-elected in 1984. Re-elected in 1986. Re-elected in 1988. Re-elected in 1990. Re-elected in 1992. Re-elected in 1994. Retired.
Jay W. Johnson	Democratic	January 3, 1997 – January 3, 1999	105th	Elected in 1996. Lost re-election.
Mark Andrew Green	Republican	January 3, 1999 – January 3, 2007	106th 107th 108th 109th	Elected in 1998. Re-elected in 2000. Re-elected in 2002. Re-elected in 2004. Retired to run for Governor of Wisconsin.
Steve Kagen	Democratic	January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2011	110th 111th	Elected in 2006. Re-elected in 2008. Lost re-election.
Reid Ribble	Republican	January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2017	112th 113th 114th	Elected in 2010. Re-elected in 2012. Re-elected in 2014. Retired.
Mike Gallagher	Republican	January 3, 2017 – present	115th 116th 117th	Elected in 2016. Re-elected in 2018. Re-elected in 2020.

Recent election results[]

2006[]

2006 Wisconsin's 8th congressional district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Steve Kagen	141,570	50.90
	Republican	John Gard	135,622	48.76
	Write-ins		943	0.34
Total votes			278,135	100.00
	Democratic gain from Republican

2008[]

2008 Wisconsin's 8th congressional district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Steve Kagen (Incumbent)	193,662	54.00
	Republican	John Gard	164,621	45.90
	Write-ins		364	0.10
Total votes			358,647	100.00
	Democratic hold

2010[]

2010 Wisconsin's 8th congressional district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Reid Ribble	143,998	54.77
	Democratic	Steve Kagen (Incumbent)	118,646	45.12
	Write-ins		294	0.11
Total votes			262,938	100.00
	Republican gain from Democratic

2012[]

2012 Wisconsin 8th Congressional District

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Reid Ribble (Incumbent)	198,874	55.95
	Democratic	Jamie Wall	156,287	43.97
	none	Scattering	303	0.09
Total votes			355,464	100.0

2014[]

2014 Wisconsin's 8th congressional district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Reid Ribble (Incumbent)	188,553	65.0
	Democratic	Ron Gruett	101,345	34.9
	N/A	Write-ins	150	0.1
Total votes			290,048	100.0
	Republican hold

2016[]

On January 30, 2016, Reid Ribble announced he would retire at the end of his third term, opening the seat for the 2016 election.^[4]

2016 Wisconsin's 8th congressional district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mike Gallagher	227,892	62.6
	Democratic	Tom Nelson	135,682	37.3
	Green	Wendy Gribben (write-in)	16	0.0
	Democratic	Jerry Kobishop (write-in)	2	0.0
	N/A	Write-ins	188	0.1
Total votes			363,280	100.0
	Republican hold

2018[]

2018 Wisconsin's 8th congressional district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mike Gallagher (Incumbent)	209,410	63.7
	Democratic	Beau Liegeois	119,265	36.3
	N/A	Write-ins	99	0.0
Total votes			328,774	100.0
	Republican hold

2020[]

Wisconsin's 8th congressional district, 2020^[5]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mike Gallagher (incumbent)	268,173	64.2
	Democratic	Amanda Stuck	149,558	35.8
	Write-in		107	0.0
Total votes			417,838	100.0
	Republican hold

Historical district boundaries[]

See also[]

• Wisconsin's congressional districts
• List of United States congressional districts

References[]

• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

External links[]

• Rep. Mike Gallagher's official House of Representatives website

Coordinates: 44°49′53″N 87°56′13″W / 44.83139°N 87.93694°W / 44.83139; -87.93694